今以佛眼觀之佛與眾生同住解脫之床。無此無彼無二平等。Now, observing with the eye of the Buddha, both the Buddha and ordinary beings are in the same liberated state. There is neither this nor that: there is only non-duality and identity.
- 空海 Kūkai in Unjigi 吽字義 The Meaning of the Letter Hūṃ
- Kūkai on the Philosophy of Language by Takagi Shingen and Dreitlein Eijō
_______
Śrī Singha said to Padmasambhava:Since buddhas and sentient beings are inseparable and the same, it is necessary to respect all sentient beings as being on the same level with the buddhas. Can you?
- translated by Malcolm N. Smith

QUESTION: 1)Since ye shes (pristine consciousness), shes rab (wisdom) and rnam shes (consciousness) are different modalities of shes pa.
In this context what is the difference for example between ye shes and shes rab?
2) Aren't they both operative words to describe a knowledge that determines all phenomenon as being empty? (wisdom)
3)Or to the manifest state of the ground? (pristine consciousness)

ANSWER: Shes rab and rig pa are synonyms. Dzogchen is based on the idea found in some Sarma tantras as well, that all phenomena are included in potentiality (rtsal) of ye shes when the basis arises from the basis. When the potential of ye shes is misperceived, this is rnam shes and this in turn cases samsara. When it is correctly perceived (i.e. shes rab) as one's own state, this is the cause for nirvana.

今以佛眼觀之佛與眾生同住解脫之床。無此無彼無二平等。Now, observing with the eye of the Buddha, both the Buddha and ordinary beings are in the same liberated state. There is neither this nor that: there is only non-duality and identity.
- 空海 Kūkai in Unjigi 吽字義 The Meaning of the Letter Hūṃ
- Kūkai on the Philosophy of Language by Takagi Shingen and Dreitlein Eijō
_______
Śrī Singha said to Padmasambhava:Since buddhas and sentient beings are inseparable and the same, it is necessary to respect all sentient beings as being on the same level with the buddhas. Can you?
- translated by Malcolm N. Smith

今以佛眼觀之佛與眾生同住解脫之床。無此無彼無二平等。Now, observing with the eye of the Buddha, both the Buddha and ordinary beings are in the same liberated state. There is neither this nor that: there is only non-duality and identity.
- 空海 Kūkai in Unjigi 吽字義 The Meaning of the Letter Hūṃ
- Kūkai on the Philosophy of Language by Takagi Shingen and Dreitlein Eijō
_______
Śrī Singha said to Padmasambhava:Since buddhas and sentient beings are inseparable and the same, it is necessary to respect all sentient beings as being on the same level with the buddhas. Can you?
- translated by Malcolm N. Smith

"...times change and to take this into account Sākyamuni Buddha either directly taught different teachings for different time periods, or predicted the teachers who would. We now live in the period of the five degenerations, and so the path of renunciation teachings are no longer very effective because the afflictions of sentient beings are too strong."

That luminosity of the primordial original basis, the original reality, is the ultimate dharmatā of all phenomena. All appearances of samsara and nirvana arise from that state. As soon as they arise, [3/b] it is impossible that there is a single phenomena other than abiding in that state. Since this is the ultimate ground of liberation, this is called “the dharmakāya of ultimate reality.” When the ultimate obscuration along with temporary traces are purified, the truth of cessation of the supreme vehicle is called “the svabhāvakāya that possesses the two ultimate purities.” That basis in which there is neither delusion nor liberation is the totally uniform nature.

The Self-Arisen Vidyā Tantra states:

Everything is gathered into the essential state of Mañjuśrī,
the pristine consciousness of all Secret Mantra,
the measure of the unerring transcendent state.
Therefore I am called the jñānasattva.
Everything is part of the family
of Mañjuśrī no matter where it is,
utterly pure, issuing from my state.
I am the Bhagavan victor

But as Norbu Rinpoche said again today, belief is useless because you can believe or have faith in anything. Only direct experience is useful, because then a) you will not need to believe anything and b) you will have no doubt.

今以佛眼觀之佛與眾生同住解脫之床。無此無彼無二平等。Now, observing with the eye of the Buddha, both the Buddha and ordinary beings are in the same liberated state. There is neither this nor that: there is only non-duality and identity.
- 空海 Kūkai in Unjigi 吽字義 The Meaning of the Letter Hūṃ
- Kūkai on the Philosophy of Language by Takagi Shingen and Dreitlein Eijō
_______
Śrī Singha said to Padmasambhava:Since buddhas and sentient beings are inseparable and the same, it is necessary to respect all sentient beings as being on the same level with the buddhas. Can you?
- translated by Malcolm N. Smith

CapNCrunch wrote:I have folders of things I've quietly copied, pasted and enjoyed over and over, or e-mailed to myself, or my wife who's a practitioner. We have spent hours reading these things and discussing together. I won't paste my treasure trove here b/c they are personal to me, and would be necessarily removed from the context in which they were written.

I've also done this over a few years, I wonder how many others have also. I printed out hard copies - I have to confess on several occasions I ended up throwing them against the wall - but always came back to consider and ruminate further. I'm grateful beyond words for Lopon Malcolm's patience, generosity and wisdom.

Malcolm wrote:Attend all webcasts of Chogyal Namkhai Norbu you can and receive transmission, work with some Dzogchen methods, decide to go somewhere and meet him when you have the chance, and then continue to learn Dzogchen from him directly. He generally spends 6 months a year in Tenerife. He is there presently. He is the most interesting master alive today, without parallel.

The different sūtras in accord with the emptiness
taught by the Sugata are definitive in meaning;
One can understand that all of those Dharmas in
which a sentient being, individual, or person are taught are provisional in meaning.

I've also done this over a few years, I wonder how many others have also. I printed out hard copies - I have to confess on several occasions I ended up throwing them against the wall - but always came back to consider and ruminate further. I'm grateful beyond words for Lopon Malcolm's patience, generosity and wisdom.

An example of the limits of (at least my) mind to meaningfully process the endless information with which it is bombarded - I only just the other day discovered the Atikosha website, and it's probably been in M's sig and elsewhere for god knows how long. I might have spent less time sifting nuggets and more time enjoying them if I'd have known there was a collection available.

Not that I don't appreciate the experience and utility of an interactive forum when there is time, but for years now it's in short supply. Sometimes really interesting stuff or a great translation snippet will appear in the latest iteration of the endless rehash of the same questions & topics that speak to the patience you mentioned.

The work of bringing the Dzogchen Cannon to English in any form, even academically, hasn't yet gone J-shaped on a curve. More rare are translations by masters and those who work with them that have not only mastered the languages involved, but who are also grounded in the transmissions, instructions and practice.

I simply can't think of a single thing that has more importance and will be of greater value for the future of our world than these efforts.

“I say good-bye to hope, but I also say goodbye to hope's disappointment.”

...when we talk of "the teaching through blessings" or the lineage of the transcendent state of the victors, what is actually meant is that the Sambhogakāya communicates the teachings through light to the buddhas of the five families and so on.

Malcolm wrote:Nirvana in Mahāyāna is nonabiding nirvana, meaning that buddhas are active in the world and have infinite emanations.

Since Buddhas (Or Rather Dharmakayas) have infinite emanations as stated here and in the Brahma Net Sutra

"Now, I, Vairocana Buddha, am sitting atop a lotus pedestal; on a thousand flowers surrounding me are a thousand Sakyamuni Buddhas. Each flower supports a hundred million worlds; in each world a Sakyamuni Buddha appears. All are seated beneath a Bodhi-tree, all simultaneously attain Buddhahood. All these innumerable Buddhas have Vairocana as their original body."

Why does each world system only have one Buddha? Why are is there not a Buddha every generation to uphold the right teachings and keep the Dharma Wheel spinning?

Malcolm wrote:Nirvana in Mahāyāna is nonabiding nirvana, meaning that buddhas are active in the world and have infinite emanations.

Since Buddhas (Or Rather Dharmakayas) have infinite emanations as stated here and in the Brahma Net Sutra

"Now, I, Vairocana Buddha, am sitting atop a lotus pedestal; on a thousand flowers surrounding me are a thousand Sakyamuni Buddhas. Each flower supports a hundred million worlds; in each world a Sakyamuni Buddha appears. All are seated beneath a Bodhi-tree, all simultaneously attain Buddhahood. All these innumerable Buddhas have Vairocana as their original body."

Why does each world system only have one Buddha? Why are is there not a Buddha every generation to uphold the right teachings and keep the Dharma Wheel spinning?

There are. They are however not supreme nirmanakāyas, but they are nirmanakāyas nevertheless.

The different sūtras in accord with the emptiness
taught by the Sugata are definitive in meaning;
One can understand that all of those Dharmas in
which a sentient being, individual, or person are taught are provisional in meaning.